The invention relates to computer system identification.
A server (an Internet server, for example) may furnish a web site that provides a particular service. In this manner, a user of the web site may communicate with the web site via a client computer system. Sometimes the server may control access to the web site so that only a select group of users may access the service provided by the web site.
The ubiquitous use of e-mail and the rapid growth of community and chat-based web sites allow Internet users to reach out and interact with people whom they have never met. Unfortunately, not all individuals who participate in these forums are well-intentioned. Despite the fact that most chat-rooms use such access controls as a user name and password to control access to the community, a few users, after being denied access for inappropriate behavior, may circumvent these access controls. For example, a banned user may assume a new user name to regain access to the chat area and continue the disruptive behavior. This circumvention may allow single individuals to destroy the efforts of a group of people and lessen their enjoyment of the online experience.
An embedded identifier, such as a processor serial number (hereinafter called a “processor number”), may offer an effective means of deterring the above-described behavior by identifying the computer system that accesses the web site. For special chat rooms which require extra accountability, such as chat rooms for minors, web sites may create responsible chat environments where codes of conduct are enforceable and reliable by requiring that individuals provide their processor number (in addition to their name and password) to gain access to the chat room. If every member of a chat area volunteers his or her processor number, the net result is a more secure community that may more effectively deal with potentially threatening behavior. After all, if problem users volunteer to participate in a room that not only encourages but enforces responsible behavior via the use of processor numbers, their ability to regain denied access to the chat room may be thwarted, even if the problem users change their user names.
Unfortunately, the use of an embedded identifier to identify the client computer system may present difficulties. For example, the number may be used to build a trail of information that links the user to different databases that are maintained on the Internet. These databases, in turn, may be correlated to build a vast database of private information about the user. Although, it is unlikely that such a database could be built given the fact that the user may have the capability to disable the processor number identification, there is a continuing need to enhance the user's privacy protection.